


Ils sont trouvés

by LtTanyaBoone



Category: Pan Am
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-04
Updated: 2012-07-04
Packaged: 2017-11-15 08:26:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,579
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/525223
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LtTanyaBoone/pseuds/LtTanyaBoone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"This was it. This was what she had been looking to find for almost a year now. A year of searching, leads and letdowns had brought her here."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Ils sont trouvés

**Disclaimers:** Pan Am, the rights to the show and its characters do not belong to me. No money was made by this.  
 **Spoilers:** 1x14 1964  
 **Pairing:** Colette Valois/Dean Lowrey

* * *

Colette looked up at the building, taking in the many windows and various flower arrangements in them. She took a deep breath. This was it. This was what she had been looking to find for almost a year now. A year of searching, leads and letdowns had brought her here.

She looked down at her hand, the note with the address crumbled as she held onto it tightly.

To her credit, she did not jump when Dean gently wrapped his hand around hers, giving it a soft squeeze.

“You ready for this?” he asked her softly. Colette inhaled and opened her mouth before deflating.

“It is stupid, _non_?” she muttered, shaking her head. “I have wanted to meet him ever since I found out, but now… What if he does not know I exist? What am I going to say? What if he does not want to know me?” she asked. Dean shifted on his feet, looking up at the building.

“You could still see him.” he shrugged. “We make up some ruse. You’re my tourist guide, I’m the child from Jews who fled before the German invasion and I want to see where my parents lived. How’s that?” he offered. Despite herself, Colette smiled as she shook her head and reached out to gently stroke his cheek.

“Only one problem.”

“What? I’m an American tourist, that explains why I don’t speak French.”

Colette shook her head and pointed at the wall of the building, where a big 1953 declared when it had been built.

“Oh.” the pilot deflated. “Well, there goes my fantastic plan.” he joked and Colette shook her head, laughing at his antics. She was so happy he had come with her, been at her side the whole time she had been looking for her brother. She had needed his optimism and his caution so many times, and he just knew what to say to cheer her up.

A small voice piping up behind them made them turn and Dean saw Colette’s face light up slightly when a boy spoke to them in French. He had picked up some phrases along the ride, but he was nowhere near able to understand the rapid exchange between them.

“ _C’est mon papa_!” the boy exclaimed, beaming at Colette and Dean quickly grabbed her arm as the child sped past them towards the entrance of the building.

“Did he just say-”

“That Olivier Bissette is his father?” she breathed, staring at the child as he pulled open the door to the building. “I have a nephew.”

Dean looked up to see the boy waving at them, obviously waiting to come along. “Colette…”

“I am fine.” she shook her head. “This is what this was about, non? Finding my family.” she smiled at him, taking his hand and squeezing it tightly as they walked up to the house, following the boy up two flights of stairs. Dean watched him. He couldn’t have been older than five. As the boy rang the doorbell and knocked, Dean tried to find some resemblance to Colette in him, but was interrupted by the door opening. The boy erupted into a torrent of words before speeding past the young woman that had answered. She shook her head, laughing and calling after him. Which was when Dean caught his name. Charles.

The woman then turned to them and Dean saw Colette just stare at her.

“We’re, uh, looking for Olivier?” he tried. “Nous cher… cherchons Olivier?” Either his butchered French or the name made it clear what they wanted; the woman called into the apartment and a man appeared, Charles sitting on his shoulders. Now there was a resemblance. Olivier had the same thick eyelashes that his sister did, and the same smile that showed on his face as he looked at his guests expectantly.

“ _Est-ce que vous-_ ” Olivier started, but cut off when Dean felt Colette take a staggering step backwards. He quickly wrapped his arm around her waist, steadying her. Olivier’s girlfriend, or his wife, or whatever, ushered them in quickly and Dean helped Colette into a chair, handing her the glass of water the other woman brought them.

“You okay?” he asked her when he saw how badly her hands were shaking. Colette nodded then shook her head, a strangled sound escaping her throat. “It’s okay, take your time.”

The boy said something and it seemed to snap Colette out of her shock; she shook her head and responded in French, giving him a soft smile before her eyes settled on his father, her brother.

“I’m guessing they want to know why we’re here.” Dean asked when Olivier said something. When he looked back at her, he saw the first tears run down Colette’s cheeks. “Colette, hey.” he muttered, squeezing her shoulder.

“ _Votre nom, c’est Colette_?” the woman asked, her eyes wide. Colette nodded slowly. “Colette Valois?” she inquired, and Dean’s eyes widened as they suddenly all erupted into rapid French. Olivier handed Charles over to the boy’s mother and then pulled up his sister, hugging her tightly and crying into her shoulder.

“What, what is going on?” Dean asked, confused and slightly worried when he saw Colette clutch at her brother’s back before leaning back and holding his face as she shook her head, too stunned for words.

“They were looking for me.” Colette said when her brother finally let her go, taking Dean’s offered handkerchief. “When his parents told him he was adopted, he went back to the orphanage and they told him that he had a sister. He’s been looking for me for years, but he could not find me.” she shook her head before introducing Dean and finally learning that the woman was indeed Olivier’s wife Sophie.

Sophie insisted that they stay for dinner. There were so many questions, so much that brother and sister wanted to talk about, and Colette had to translate most for Dean. Olivier barely spoke any English, his wife even less and Charles none. That did not stop the boy from talking to Dean the whole time, taking a great interest in him after learning that Dean was a pilot. They learned that Olivier’s parents had told him about the adoption when he turned eighteen. He had gone back to the orphanage to find out who his parents had been, but instead had learned that he had a sister, Colette Valois. He had tried to look for her, but as a worker at a small factory assembling cars he did not have enough money to hire someone to look for her. He had learned that Colette had moved to the US, but there he had had to stop because he could not afford a flight and could not pay for someone stateside to do research for him.

As it turned out, Charles was not their biological son. Sophie and Olivier had gotten married almost two years ago and shortly after learned that they could not have children. Charles was from the same orphanage where Colette had grown up in; they had completely fallen in love with him when Sophie had gone with Olivier to get some answers to a few questions that had come up during their search. He had been with them for over a year now, and it seemed like he was more than content with his parents.

After dinner, the picture albums came out and Dean watched brother and sister go through Olivier’s childhood, talking and laughing with each other, unable to stop touching as if the other would disappear in an instant. It had been a long year, one full of hope whenever they found new information and also full of disappointments when leads they found turned out to be nothing, and he had heard Colette cry herself to sleep more than once. But seeing her like this, so happy that the smile would not disappear from her face and her brown eyes sparkling, he thought that it had been more than worth it.

It was late when they left the apartment, Colette and her brother unable to stop hugging each other and making promises to meet again the next day. When the door finally closed and he and Colette stepped outside, she took Dean’s hand, her dark eyes sparkling in the light of the street lamp.

“You look happy.” he observed, unable to stop himself from smiling. There was something about Colette’s smile that was just so, catching. It never failed to cheer him up and make his heart flutter.

“I am. Very happy.” she laughed, pulling him close and kissing him. “Thank you.” Colette whispered against his lips.

“For what?” Dean asked, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close.

“For coming with me. For helping me find my brother, to get closure.” she tilted her head. Dean smiled at her, giving a slight shrug.

“Yeah, well, I’m just glad we finally found him.” he muttered, kissing her again.

“ _Moi, aussi_.” Colette responded, searching his face when she leaned back. “And I think that maybe I can finally let go of the past. And focus on the future.” she added, her voice catching slightly. Dean gave her a wide smile, tightening his hold on her.

“Sounds great.” he softly said before he leaned in for another kiss.

_fin._

**Author's Note:**

> translations:
> 
> C'est mon papa! - That's my dad!
> 
> Est-ce que vous... - Are you...
> 
> Votre nom, c'est Colette? - Your name, it's Colette?
> 
> And unless I completely screwed up, the title is French for "they are found".


End file.
